Where Does NYC’s Recycling Go and How Much Really Gets Reused, Anyway?

How Much of the Recycling Material that New Yorkers Put into Recycling Bins Actually Gets Recycled?

Much of what you put into the recycling bin is on a path to become other materials, but not all of it. New York City has long-term contracts with Pratt and Balcones mandating the companies accept recyclable materials and put them to beneficial use. Pratt, as you’ll read more about, does its own recycling and transforms paper into, for instance, cardboard and pizza boxes. Balcones sells its processed material to buyers, who then further process it and may sell that to manufacturers, who use it to produce new goods.

Are Recycled Materials Really Used to Make New Things?

It depends. Whether a material can actually be recycled depends on if there’s a buyer willing to purchase the material it’s made from and then either use it or sell it to a manufacturer who can. Metals generally have strong markets. The material has lots of buyers that want it. On the other hand, there’s not much of a market for, say, the material in plastic shopping bags and bubble wrap. Those usually end up being incinerated — which creates energy, which some view as a positive reuse — or dumped in landfills.

What Actually Happens to Your Recycling?

Depending on what it is — paper or plastic, metal or glass — and where you live, the material goes to Brooklyn, Jersey City or Staten Island to get sorted and cleaned. Let’s start with the city’s plastic, metal and glass recycling. Most of that ends up at Balcones in Sunset Park, Brooklyn. It’s a high-tech, state-of-the-art plant — one of the largest of its kind in North America, based on the 1,000 tons of material it receives each day.

Isn’t Plastic Recycling a Myth? Don’t Most Plastics End Up in a Landfill Anyway?

Some plastics do get truly recycled — i.e. turned into new items — but we are still pumping a ton of new plastic into the world. You may have heard some alarming statistics about the tiny share of plastic that gets recycled. The Environmental Protection Agency, for instance, estimated 8.7% of plastics were recycled across the United States in 2018. Another study by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development put that figure at 4% in 2019.

Didn’t China Stop Accepting Waste from the U.S.? How Did That Affect Trash Here?

In 2018, China stopped accepting most plastics from abroad. Before that, it had taken in almost half of global recyclable material for about 25 years. That change had a big effect on many other cities, which stopped accepting certain material in their recycling streams or landfilled much more trash. But New York City was mostly insulated from China’s policy change.

The Bottom Line

With all the problems with recycling, you may be left wondering: Does it really matter if I sort my stuff and recycle it? This much is true: Recycling material prevents stuff from entering landfills or incinerators, which create planet-warming greenhouse gases and air pollutants. But Napolitano of Balcones warned New Yorkers to stop thinking that recycling saves the planet. It doesn’t! It’s a less lofty but still meaningful act.

Conclusion

Recycling in New York City is a complex process, and it’s essential to understand where our recyclables go and what happens to them. While not all materials are recycled, the city’s recycling programs do play a crucial role in reducing waste and conserving natural resources. By sorting our recyclables correctly and participating in recycling programs, we can all do our part to make a positive impact on the environment.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What happens to the materials that are not recyclable?
A: Materials that are not recyclable are sent to landfills or incinerators, where they can release greenhouse gases and air pollutants.

Q: How can I ensure that my recyclables are being recycled correctly?
A: By following the city’s recycling guidelines and sorting your materials correctly, you can ensure that your recyclables are being recycled correctly.

Q: Why is recycling important?
A: Recycling is important because it helps to conserve natural resources, reduce waste, and decrease the need for new landfills and incinerators.